18 Arrested as Trident Raids Target Northeast Drug Network

A 38-location operation across Assam, Mizoram and Manipur ended with 18 arrests, 1,424 frozen bank accounts and 500 seized detonators, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said. He announced the results on October 25, two days after the raids, calling Operation Trident a strike against an alleged international drug network. Authorities also seized ₹12 lakh in cash and attached property worth ₹17.82 crore. ^1,7

Central agencies carried out the raids on October 23 with police forces in the three states. Shah said investigators uncovered hawala transfers worth ₹100 crore and accused the network of moving drugs across the borders of India, Myanmar and Bangladesh. Hawala transfers move money through informal brokers rather than regular bank channels. But the reported amount alone does not show that every transfer funded crime. Authorities have not publicly detailed the allegations against each person arrested. ^5,7

That unanswered question matters because the operation’s headline figures describe what agencies say they found, not a court’s finding of guilt. Freezing accounts and attaching property can limit access to suspected funds while investigators check their origins and links to drug sales. The alleged route crosses borders in a region where trafficking networks can operate across several countries. Shah called it the “Death Triangle Corridor” and presented the raids as part of a wider effort to disrupt drug movement and its funding. ^1,5,10

The next test is whether investigators can turn the arrests and financial trail into evidence linking specific people, accounts and property to trafficking. Shah said the government aims to eliminate every drug network by December 31, 2029, and praised the central agencies and three state police forces. The operation’s results are public, but reports did not include detailed charges or further findings. ^1,5